Kiara's Reign
by KidCountry17
Summary: Well I'm not the author of the first nine chapters that are gonna go up, so I got nothing for a summary, but it is a great story and I will continue the story after the original authors chapters are up.
1. Chapter 1

**Ok well this story isn't mine I did ask permission from the person who originally made it to post up the chapters she wrote and then continue it myself from where she left of the characters not from the movie are hers. Enjoy.**

Chapter 1

Some time had passed since Zira's reign of terror ended. The outlander pride was accepted back into the Pridelands with open arms. The great king Simba's daughter Kiara became mates with the former rogue, Kovu. They had caused a reign of peace between former enemy prides. Kovu was accepted into Simba's family and was taught by Simba himself, how to be a great king. Now Kiara and Kovu were blessed with a family of their own, three beautiful cubs, Koda, Asha and Leah.  
Asha was the eldest of the litter, and the most levelheaded cub the pride had seen in a long time. Koda was the middle cub. He had his mother's rebellious spirit, and was a bit headstrong. Leah was the youngest of the litter. Leah had been born with a crippled back left leg, so she always limped when she walked, and couldn't run well. Kovu and Kiara tended to keep her close to home; for fear that she could get into serious trouble with her leg.  
It was the beginning of the rainy season in the Pridelands, and Koda and Asha excitedly ran out of the towering pride rock's main cavern. Asha's fiery orange pelt shimmered in the sun's rays. Koda's chocolate brown fur didn't shimmer like his sister's, it was scruffier and a little messy, like he had been rolled out of bed only a few minutes ago.  
"Beat you to the water hole!" Asha shouted to her brother.  
"You wish!" he shouted back. Kiara stepped out of the cave as well. She smiled at the two cubs.  
"Hey cubs, where do you think you're going?" she asked casually. The siblings stopped in their tracks and turned to the Lioness.  
"Were just off to the water hole mom." Asha explained. The lioness chuckled.  
"All right, just be careful, 'kay?" she told them.  
"Come on mom, we're always careful." Koda said smoothly.  
"Uh huh." Kiara smirked, as the cubs raced off. She shook her head and rolled her eyes. Just then, a small voice squeaked up from the cave behind Kiara.  
"Wait for me guys!"  
Kiara turned her head around to see another cub stumbling out of the cavern frantically. The cub was a little smaller than the other two. Her fur was a gold-tan colour. Her eyes were a deep crimson.  
"I wanna come too!" The cub cried. She didn't notice a protruding rock that stuck up from the ground. Before Kiara could react, the cub's front foot caught the rock. Since she didn't have enough balance, she tumbled head over heels and landed hard onto her stomach. Kiara rushed over to the cub and stood over her as she slowly got up.  
"Leah, are you ok?" she asked the cub. Leah shook her head and sat on her haunches.  
"Yeah, I'm fine," Leah replied sadly, "It's not like I haven't tripped over that rock before…"  
Kiara lay down onto her belly, and placed a paw on the disgruntled cub's shoulders.  
"I know Leah," the lioness murmured, "that leg of yours—"  
"Yeah, my stupid leg!" the cub blurted out, frowning at the ground. Kiara sighed.  
"Now Leah, I know that you're frustrated with it, but I'm sure you'll get the hang of it." She said in a soothing tone. Leah wasn't so sure.  
"I doubt it," she said, looking off into the distance, "I'm so lame! I can't even run two feet without tripping over something or someone. I don't even know why I leave the cave."  
Kiara sighed again and slowly shook her head. Leah had never had very much confidence. Other cubs in the pride always teased her and called her 'lame brain'. She often stayed in the caves and crevices of pride rock. It pained her parents to see her like that.  
Kiara smiled down at the little lion.  
"Well, if you're too lame, then I guess I'll have to find someone else to come with me to the water hole to visit with grandma Nala and aunt 'Tani." She said, knowing that had caught Leah's attention. Leah turned her head to her mother quickly. A small smile played on her lips.  
"Well, I guess I could leave the cave this once." She said, barely able to hide her eagerness. Kiara chuckled lightly and stood up. She turned to the walkway, which lead down pride rock.  
"Well come on then, squirt." She said with a smile. She started down the staircase of rocks. Leah hobbled down after her with a skip in her step.


	2. Kiara's Reign Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Most of the royal pride was resting down at the water hole that afternoon. Some of the lionesses sunned themselves on rocks, others were resting under the shade of the acacia trees. Kiara and little Leah strolled past all of the resting lionesses to the largest acacia tree. Under the tangled branches, two lionesses lay on a large moss covered rock. Leah sped up her pace.  
"Hi grandma Nala! Aunt 'Tani!" she squeaked. Queen Nala raised her head to see her grandcub limping towards her and her friend. The other lioness, a scruffy former outlander named Vitani lifted her head as well. Leah eagerly broke into a run to them, and accidentally lost her footing and tumbled to the ground. She would've landed on her face, if not for Vitani, who quickly swung out her paw and caught the little cub.  
"Careful, furball," Vitani said smoothly, as Leah sat down, "you don't want mud up your nose, do ya?"  
"Hee, hee, no ma'am." Leah giggled. Kiara sighed in relief and lay down on the rock beside her friend and mother.  
"So what brings you by the water hole today, kid?" Vitani asked. Leah hesitated to answer, but then put on a big cheeky grin.  
"Oh, I just felt like hangin' out with my family, this fine day." She replied, a little too cheerfully. Vitani could see through her façade easily.  
"Aw, Leah, you know we love your company, but you should really try playing with cubs your own age." Vitani said. Leah shrugged.  
"Well yeah, I could," she replied, "but I'm a loser, I would slow 'em down."  
Vitani shook her head. Nala looked at the troubled cub with a sympathetic look in her aquamarine eyes.  
"You're not a loser, Leah." She said. Leah looked up at the queen.  
"Your siblings are just over on the banks of the waterhole, why don't you go join them." She added. Leah looked over to see Koda and Asha horsing around, or 'lioning around?' with three other cubs. Leah looked back at the three lionesses. Kiara nodded to her encouragingly. Leah stood up and turned to face the cubs.  
"I guess." She said, starting towards the cubs.  
"See yuh later, guys!" she called back as she hobbled away. Nala, Kiara and Vitani all exchanged a smile and all lay back down.

Koda, Asha and the other cubs were sopping wet from swimming, as they ran around. Asha was 'it'. She closed in on a cream coloured cub. She sprang at her and slammed down on the cub, pinning her.  
"Gotcha Akila!" she cried. The cub spat out a mouthful of sand.  
"Aww man!" Akila wined. Asha laughed and released her friend. Koda and the other two boys wandered over.  
"Ok, so now Akila is 'it'" Koda announced, but then he sneered, "but just to make it interesting, Akila AND Asha are 'it'"  
"WHAT?" the girls said in sync. The boys laughed.  
"Yeah, now you gotta chase after Asante, Dogo and me!" he laughed. And with that, the boys ran off. The girls were about to chase after them when Leah crashed into Asha.  
"Oof!" Asha grunted as they both fell over. Leah shook her head, little grains of sand rained from her fur. Asha glared at her sister as the boys came back to see, much to their dismay, Leah.  
"Sorry, Ash'" Leah said to her sister. Asha still seemed irritated, but she stopped glaring.  
"That's ok, Leah." She said as she stood up. Dogo and Asante groaned obnoxiously loud.  
"Aww, Asha, you didn't actually invite the crippled klutz to join our game, did you?" Asante wined. Leah glared at him.  
"Well I—" Asha started, but was interrupted by Akila.  
"Of coarse she didn't, right Asha?" she blurted out. Asha fumbled, trying to find the right answer.  
"I just wanted to play with you guys." Leah interceded looking at her brother, hoping that he would back her up. Koda looked nervous, like he didn't know whose side he should take in this.  
"Well you can't play with us!" Dogo butted in, stepping in closer to Leah, "Were going to race to the ravine now, and we all know you can't run!"  
That stung. Leah backed off a bit. Asha knew it was time to step in. She stood in front of her sister and glared at the others, Koda included.  
"Dogo, back off!" she said darkly, "That was out of line!"  
Dogo did back off, he knew better than to argue with Asha, mostly due to the fact that she could easily kick his butt, and nobody could give the evil eye better than her, due to her icy mint eyecolour.  
"I see no reason why she can't join us, guys." Asha said. Leah smiled at her sister and limped up beside her. Asante turned his back to the sisters and started to walk away from them, Dogo and Akila followed.  
"Come on, let's go Koda, we'll go to the ravine on our own." Asante said to Koda. Koda looked back at his sisters. Asha's eyes were blank, as if she was saying 'it's up to you to make the right choice'. Koda looked back at the others, who were all looking at him expectantly. He took one more look at his sisters.  
"Well?" Akila called. Koda turned his back to his sisters and followed his friends.  
"I'm coming, guys!" he said. They all laughed and ran off, leaving Asha and Leah in the dust. Asha looked down and slowly shook her head. Leah looked down as well.  
"I'm sorry Asha." She sighed. Asha looked back at her.  
"It's ok, sis." She replied. Then she smiled. She slapped her tail against Leah's shoulder.  
"You're it!" she cried and trotted away. Leah laughed.  
"Hey!" she shouted and charged after her sister.


	3. Kiara's Reign Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Leah and Asha played for what seemed like hours, they laughed and chased after each other. Leah only tripped twice, which was quite good for her. Leah caught Asha off guard and was able to pin her down. Asha laughed and tried to get up, but Leah held her down, with a very smug look on her face. A drop of rain landed on the back of her head. She got off of her sister and stared up at the grey sky. Asha got up and looked up at the sky as well. Her expression was troubled. Leah looked off to where the others had run off maybe twenty minutes ago. She looked at Asha, who still looked troubled.  
"Shouldn't they be back by now?" Leah asked her sister. Asha met Leah's concerned gaze.  
"Yeah, and the ravine gets pretty dangerous in the rain." Asha replied. She glanced over at her mother, who had dozed off on the rock with Nala and aunt 'Tani. The tree's branches sheltered them from the now pouring rain. Asha and the others were told to stay at the water hole, so Koda and the others would be in big trouble if Kiara found out that they left. As angry as she was with her brother, she couldn't let him get in trouble.  
"Let's go get our moronic brother, shall we?" Asha said, following the tracks left by the others. Leah nodded, and limped after her.

The rain hammered down on the sisters as they followed the paw prints in the mud. They entered through the long grass; the sound of rushing water got louder and louder. They were almost at the ravine. Asha had a horrible feeling in her gut as she emerged from the grass, Leah right on her tail. Thunder boomed overhead as the rain continued to pour. Asha squinted through the rain as she saw the cubs leaning over the edge of chasm, they were screaming and calling a name. Asha ran up to them. Asante, Akila and Dogo were there, but Koda was no where to be seen. Leah looked over the edge. Her heart leaped up into her throat as she saw Koda, dangling halfway down the ravine, his teeth were clenched onto a rotting vine that stuck out of the rocky wall. The river rushed below him.  
"KODA!" Asha screamed down at him. Koda stared up at her. His eyes were wild with fear. The vine was starting to split apart. Asha turned around to face Dogo, Asante and Akila. She had a mad light in her eyes.  
"Go get my parents and bring them here immediately!" she ordered. Asante exchanged a glance with Akila.  
"But then they'll know we were—" Dogo started.  
"DO IT!" Asha screamed. The three cleared out into the long grass.  
"Leah, quick, we need to…" Asha started, turning back towards Leah, but Leah wasn't there anymore. Ice formed in Asha's stomach as she quickly looked over the edge to see Leah down on a narrow ledge, now holding the other end of Koda's vine. She had caught it before Koda could plummet any farther down the crevice. 'How did she get down there?!' Asha thought. Lightning flashed overhead as Leah tried to pull Koda up. The ledge she was standing on started crumbling under her paws.  
Asha saw what was coming. She sprang down the ravine, somehow finding footholds like a mountain goat. The ledge gave way as Leah tumbled down. Asha dug her claws into the rocky chasm wall and snapped her jaws down onto the middle of the vine, stopping Koda and Leah's fall. Asha strained against their weight. Her paws were bleeding from scraping against the rock. Koda dangled from one end of the vine, Leah dangled on the other end.  
Leah could see the side holding Koda was fraying, soon it would snap again. She looked up at her side; it was fraying as well. She could see Asha starting to shake, trying to hold them both up. Leah's heart pounded, as she saw Asha's grip on the rocky wall loosening slightly. She couldn't save them both. Tears streamed down Asha's cheeks.  
"Asha!" Leah shouted up to her sister through her teeth, "The vine's snapping!"  
Asha's eyes shut, as she tried to pull once again. Her entire body was shaking. Koda's vine was frayed halfway through. Leah knew there was no more time.  
"Asha you can't save us both!" Leah screamed through her teeth. Asha's eyes widened, "Let me fall, and save Koda!"  
"No Leah! I will never let you fall!" Asha screamed back, her teeth tightly clenched on the vine's middle. Leah new this was coming.  
"I know you wont." She said, in a tired tone. Koda's eyes darted to his sister. Asha's eyes were locked onto her sister. Her heart nearly stopped after what happened next.  
Leah released her bite on the vine and let herself drop down into the turbulent waters below.  
'NOOOOOOOOOO!' Asha screamed in her head. She almost screamed out loud, but then she remembered that she still had her brother on the other end of the vine. She heard distant calls above the ravine; she knew it was her parents. She felt a surge of adrenaline run through her limbs as she tried once more to pull him back up. Her sister's sacrifice was not going to be for nothing.  
Asha's muscles screamed in protest as she slowly made it up the wall of the ravine. The rain was still hammering down, making the rocks slippery. Asha almost made it to the top of the ravine wall, when the foothold she had broke apart. She and her brother would've fallen to their deaths if it hadn't been for the set of jaws that managed to catch the scruff of her neck. She and he brother were pulled out of the ravine to the safety of the ledge. Koda and Asha tried to catch their breath. Asha felt like she was about to pass out as she gazed up at her rescuer. A large dark furred Lion with a big mane and a scar over his left eye stood over her. It was her father, Kovu. Behind him were Kiara, Nala, Simba and Vitani. They all had worried looks on their faces.  
Kovu's face had a mix worry and anger on it. Kiara stepped over to her cubs.  
"Are you two alright?" she asked, her voice shaking, "where is Leah?"  
Asha exchanged looks with Koda. He was grief stricken.  
"Where is Leah?" Kovu repeated. Asha stared up at her father and burst into tears.


	4. Kiara's Reign Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Kovu and Simba had the entire pride on the hunt for the missing cub. Rafiki had come as well. He tried to feel for any sign of Leah, as he put herbs on Asha's sliced up paws to help them heal.  
Asha felt terrible. Beyond terrible. She wanted to search every square inch of the ravine for her baby sister, but she knew in her gut that Leah was gone, and it was all her fault. If she stopped Koda and the others from going to the ravine in the first place, or if she had watched over Leah closer, or if she had been able to hold that vine a little bit longer, none of this would've happened.  
The rain was now down to a drizzle, and the sun was breaking through the grey clouds, shining beams of light down on the freshly washed earth, this would've been a beautiful scene, but for all Asha cared, it could've been grey and snowing. Nothing should be beautiful anymore.  
The pride searched and searched for what seemed like hours. The sun had now set, and the howls of hyenas started to ring in the distance. The search had to be called off for the night.  
Kovu and Kiara felt horrible. They were led by Simba and Nala back to pride rock. Nala asked Asha if she wanted to be carried, but Asha refused. She felt that she deserved to walk home on her aching paws. Koda trailed behind her, his head was down. The walk home felt more like a funeral procession.

The pride lay down in the main cavern of pride rock, all except Kiara and Kovu, they sat outside. Grieving.  
Asha was lying against the cave wall, far from the other lions. A million different thoughts were buzzing in her head, she knew that she wasn't going to sleep anytime soon.  
"Asha?" a voice said behind her. Asha turned her head to see her brother standing there. He looked terrible.  
His eyes were red from crying. His normally slicked back fur on his head was now messy and wet. The frown on his lips looked almost permanently etched onto his muzzle. Over all, it looked like he really needed a hug.  
Asha knew he felt horrible about what happened, and she knew that he thought it was his fault. She flicked her tail at him, inviting him to come closer. Koda sauntered to his sister and collapsed down beside her.  
"Koda, this wasn't your fault." Asha whispered. Koda sniffed.  
"Shows how much you know." Koda moaned; his voice cracked. Asha knew he wasn't going to change his mind. She nuzzled his neck and rested her head on his back and sighed. Koda sighed as well and closed his eyes. Asha hated to see her brother like this; he was all she had left now. She wasn't going to let him get hurt now; she was not going to let this happen again.  
Asha closed her eyes and finally drifted to sleep.

The sun rose over a different land, far beyond the Pridelands. It was a mountainous land, with rocky cliffs and canyons everywhere. It was the realm of the mountain priders; a group lions, about twenty strong. They were widely known as the huntresses of Africa, due to their advanced hunting skills. They were extremely territorial as well. Any trespasser was usually killed.  
Two lionesses on border patrol were sitting at their posts; the morning sun was beating down on them. One looked at the other  
"Why don't we go check down by the river, Azima," She said to her comrade, "you know nobody would be stupid enough to enter out territory this way."  
The other lioness, with a stern, cold face looked back at her partner.  
"Nonsense Chiku, we must remain at our posts," Azima said flatly, "you know the alpha lion doesn't appreciate deserters. We are on duty."  
Chiku rolled her eyes.  
"I'm not saying that we need to desert our posts, I'm just saying that we should check the river. Don't you remember that one lioness that snuck into our lands by river? We can't be too careful."  
"No Chiku." Azima said firmly. Chiku lay down on her rocky ledge and looked over at the river. It snaked through the very heart of their territory. Chiku's eyes scanned the river, and locked onto a small mass that looked like it had just recently washed up on shore. She sat up and looked over at Azima, who was looking in the other direction.  
"Hey Azima, I see something." Chiku said. Azima growled deep in her throat.  
"If this is another chameleon, Chiku, so help me I will—" she started.  
"It's not a chameleon, it's something on the river banks." Chiku cut in. Azima looked over at the river as well.  
"Probably just another dead animal, washed up from the outlands." She grumbled. Chiku shook her head.  
"I don't think so." She said. She unsheathed her claws and climbed down the cliff side. Azima let out a long annoyed sigh and followed.  
The lionesses carefully approached the thing on the banks. To their surprise, it looked like a lion, a lion cub to be exact. Azima leaned in and sniffed the furry mass.  
"It doesn't smell dead." She murmured. She placed a paw on the cub's belly and rolled it over onto its side. The cub appeared to be female, beneath the mud and sand; her fur was a gold-tan colour. She had a slight hair tuft on her head and had ear rims. She looked like she had been kicked, sucked on and dragged through a landfill. Chiku placed her paw onto the side of the cub's neck.  
"She has a pulse," she announced, "it's faint, but there is one. This cub is still alive."  
"Well, do away with it then." Azima said. Chiku made a shocked look.  
"What?" she asked.  
"You know the rules, Chiku, even a cub can be a threat, besides, I can smell other lions on her. She's a royal, I know it."  
"Be that as it may, I don't think we should just kill her right away. We should take her to the alpha lion and let him decide."  
"Chiku, I know you have a soft spot for cubs, I get it, but the alpha can't be bothered by one measly cub, besides, look at her leg, it looks broken."  
Chiku looked at the cub's back left leg. She leaned down and grabbed the cub's middle with her teeth, and picked her up.  
"I insist we take her to the alpha lion." She said; her voice muffled. Azima rolled her eyes and turned her back on the lioness.  
"Do what you wish. Even if you take it to the alpha lion, it's as good as dead anyway." She said, and ran back to the cliffs, and climbed up to her look out post. Chiku sighed and headed down river, to the main den area, hoping that the alpha was in a merciful mood.


	5. Kiara's Reign Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Most of the lionesses were out on the hunt that morning. The only ones at the dens were the younger cubs and the babysitting lionesses. The older cubs were being trained on how to take care of themselves and how to hunt. Chiku was a mother herself, a first time mother. Her cub was with the other young ones.  
The lioness climbed up the cliffs to the largest one above. She made it to the rocky ledge and walked to the big gaping mouth of the cave. Chiku put down the cub at the cave entrance.  
"Hello?" she called. Her voice echoed throughout the cavern. Paw steps echoed deep in the cave. They stopped just before the light that reached into the cave, so the figure was still shrouded in a veil of darkness.  
"Who is it? Why are you here?" a deep voice boomed from the shadows. Chiku struggled to keep her composure.  
"Sir, it's me, Chiku, on my watch, I found something on the banks of the river." She answered. A dark silhouette came closer to the light, but not close enough to be recognized.  
"Ah yes, the newcomer. Well, what did you find?" the voice asked. Chiku pushed the cub closer to the cave.  
"I found a cub." She answered nervously. The figure stepped into the light. He was a large male lion, with a full brown mane, and a light golden-tan fur, lighter than the cub's fur. He had deep green eyes that bore into the Chiku's. They had a small hint of cub-like curiosity, like this lioness amused him.  
"A cub, you say?" he asked. Chiku nodded and looked down at the little cub that lay at the male's feet. The male looked down at the cub. Something it the male's attitude changed when he saw her. He bent down and inspected her. As he did, more lionesses had come up to the cave. It was a huntress group of about five. They had a tiny antelope with them. The lioness in front stepped forward.  
"Alpha, we have caught the meal. We're afraid it isn't much this time." She announced. The other lioness dropped their kill and pushed it forward. The alpha lion's eyes didn't look away from the cub.  
"That's fine." He answered calmly. The lioness stepped closer.  
"What's going on?" she asked. The alpha didn't answer, as he straightened up.  
"Chiku, do you know where this cub came from?" he asked her, one of his eyebrows arched. Chiku swallowed.  
"Azima said that she smelt like a 'royal'" she answered uneasily. The male's eyes widened. Chiku felt very nervous. She knew what was going to happen. This alpha barely spared stranger cubs, and she didn't think that a royal prider was going to get any exception.  
The huntresses knew this as well, they've seen this many times. The male leaned down again to the cub. Chiku turned away, but to her surprise, the alpha just cleared his throat. Chiku turned back to see the cub, now being held by the alpha. He was handing her the cub. Confused, she took the cub.  
"She will be under your care." He said, and turned back to the cave. The huntresses were astounded.  
"What?! You're actually sparing it?!" the head lioness complained, "Have you gone soft?"  
The alpha stopped and turned to the group.  
"No, but I think it's foolish to dispose of a valuable tool. She will be trained with the other cubs. She will be of good use to us." He answered. Chiku was amazed. This was very unlike him to do this.  
"How will she be useful? She's crippled!" one lioness cried. The alpha picked up the antelope and headed back into the cave without another word. The lionesses, including Chiku, were dumbfounded. He was acting distant, even more than usual, like he was hiding something; it was downright weird.  
Chiku took the cub and headed back down the rocky cliff. She stopped at the babysitting lionesses and the cubs. There were about three lionesses. They were older than the others, so the had plenty of experience with raising cubs. About five cubs were there, either playing or sleeping. When Chiku made it to them, one of the cubs ran up to her. The cub had bright orange fur, and dark ear rims. She had light lime green eyes full of curiosity and playfulness.  
"Hi mommy!" she said cheerfully as she rubbed against her mother's leg. Chiku smiled as she put down the muddy cub.  
"Hi Lisa." She smiled. Lisa looked at the unconscious cub, who was starting to stir.  
"Who's that?" Lisa asked sniffing the cub. Chiku looked at her cub.  
"She's a new family member. I found her at the river." She replied calmly. Lisa beamed.  
"I've always wanted a sister." She said eagerly. Chiku chuckled and turned to the cliffs where she was supposed to be on duty. She knew Azima was waiting for her.  
"Well, I need to get back to my posts, so I'll see you later. It the cub wakes up, try to explain things to her the best you can, ok?" Chiku said. Lisa nodded.  
Chiku glanced once more at her rescue cub, and then she ran off. Lisa watched her mother go, the cub lying beside her started to cough and sputter. Lisa jumped back in surprise, but then walked back up to the cub. The cub's eyes slowly opened. Her eyes were a startling deep red. Lisa smiled at the cub.  
"Hey, you're awake." She squeaked. The cub was breathing hard. Her eyes had a wild look.  
"You're probably wondering where you are." Lisa said calmly, "My name's Lisa, and I would like to welcome you to the mountain Pridelands."  
The cub slowed down her breathing.  
"Uh, hi." She said, "I'm Leah. Where exactly is the mountain Pridelands?"  
"I don't know exactly." Lisa answered. Leah frowned. She tried to get up, but wobbled and fell over again. It felt like the contents of her head had joined the river.  
"Are you gunna barf?" Lisa asked uneasily.  
"No." Leah groaned, then hesitated, "maybe."  
Lisa backed off a bit. Leah started to shake the mud off of her body.  
"Why were you in that river?" Lisa asked Leah. Leah had o think on that. The memory was a little fuzzy.  
"My brother was in trouble, it was raining hard and I had to help him. I couldn't just let him fall into the river. I fell into the river so my sister Asha could pull him up." Leah finally said. Lisa looked down.  
"Oh, I'm sorry." She murmured. Leah flicked a little bit of mud off of her tail as she looked at the other cubs, they looked about the same age as her, maybe a little younger. Leah then looked up at the cliffs. At the largest den, a male lion was looking down at her. He looked almost troubled. Leah turned back to Lisa.  
"Who's that guy?" she asked. Lisa looked up.  
"Oh, that's the alpha lion." Lisa answered.  
"Does he have a name?" Leah asked. Lisa nodded.  
"Well of coarse he does. His name is Kopa."


	6. Kiara's Reign Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When Leah was finally able to stand again, Lisa gave her the grand tour. She took her through the rocky cliffs to an open grass land, full of prey, Leah could see lionesses training other cubs, they were a little bigger than she was, and they were all female except one. He had a tan pelt and a black tuft of hair on his head that was just starting to turn into his mane; he also had tufts of black fur on the tips of his ears. Leah watched as he sprang onto a field mouse, and held it in his teeth. Leah looked back at Lisa, who was yammering on about the great places on their land where you could play in mud.  
"Hey, Lisa, who are those guys?" Leah interrupted. Lisa stopped and looked at the training cubs.  
"Oh those are the hunters in training." She answered, "we're too young to do that, but in a couple months that'll be us."  
Leah shook her head.  
"Wait, Lisa I can't possibly stay here. It's nice don't get me wrong, but I have to get back to my home." She said quickly. Lisa stared at Leah.  
"Leah, you can't possibly think that you'll get home now, do you? You'd never make it through the desert, nobody does." Lisa said. Leah looked up, past the lions in the grasslands. She could see the desert, the sand dunes rose out of the ground in the distance. Her ears dropped and she looked down at her feet. Lisa was right; she'd never make it through a desert, not with her leg.  
"Great, so I'm stuck here." Leah grumbled and sat down on her haunches. Lisa sat down beside her.  
"Hey, it's not that bad, we may be a disciplined group, but we're still a family. You'll like it here." She said, encouragingly. Leah wasn't so sure. She stood up and limped into the long grass of the field. A field mouse ran in between her legs, the grass started to rustle ahead of her, so she froze and crouched down.  
"I got it, girls!" a voice shouted.  
"Huh?" Leah thought out loud. Suddenly something rammed into her, knocking her out of the long grass. The cub that had crashed into her was the male that she saw earlier; he landed a few feet sway, rubbing his paw on his head. He looked at what he hit with his deep blue eyes, once he realized what it was. He stood up quickly and hurried over to her.  
"Oh, I'm sorry cub, I didn't see you there." He said, helping her up by putting his head under her body and lifting her up.  
"Aw, that's fine, it was my fault really—" Leah started, but stopped when she met his eyes. They had a gentle light in them that seemed so inviting. Leah almost found herself blushing. He looked lean and tough, like he could take on a cape buffalo without breaking a sweat. He wasn't that much bigger than her, but she still felt so small compared to him.  
"Your fur really blends into the grass, huh." He smiled. Leah snapped out of her trance.  
"Really? I always thought that I stuck out like a sore thumb." She said nervously. His cobalt eyes studied her.  
"Hmm, I don't think I've ever seen you before. What's your name?" he asked her. Leah was silent for a bit, but then answered.  
"It's Leah." She squeaked. He chuckled good-naturedly.  
"Nice to meet you, I'm Sefu." He replied. Leah smiled. Lionesses called his name. He rolled his eyes.  
"Well, I've got to go, I'll see you around." He said cheerfully, and ran back into the grass. Lisa walked up to Leah.  
"Hey, Leah, I see you met the famous Sefu." She giggled. Leah didn't answer; she just stared at the spot where Sefu walked away. Lisa waved a paw in front of Leah's face.  
"Um, helloooo, earth to Leah?" Lisa called. Leah shook her head and looked at Lisa.  
"Sorry, I zoned out." She said. Lisa made a sly grin.  
"Oh I see what's goin' on." She said smoothly, clicking her tongue and nudging Leah on the shoulder. Leah's eyes widened.  
"No! I wasn't, I…" Leah trailed off. Lisa laughed.  
"Hey it's ok to have a crush, besides, I think everyone has a crush on that guy." Lisa said, "but it doesn't matter, that guy is the future alpha, so he's going to be betrothed anyway."  
Leah stared at Lisa.  
"Is he Kopa's?" she asked. Lisa shook her head.  
"No, he was just chosen by Kopa. The alpha doesn't have any cubs. He doesn't have a mate either." Lisa answered.  
After an awkward silence, Leah and Lisa headed back into the rocky cliffs. As they made it back to the dens, Leah looked up at Kopa's den. He was still there up on the ledge, gnawing on the femur of the antelope he was given earlier.  
"Man what is with that guy?" Leah asked Lisa.  
"You should show more respect, Leah, he is the alpha lion," Lisa replied seriously, "He usually keeps his distance from the others, but he does come down from time to time."  
"Why does he keep his distance?" Leah asked. Lisa shrugged. They turned to a lioness that was walking up to them; it was Chiku. She walked up to Lisa and Licked the top of her head.  
"You back for lunch?" Lisa asked her mother.  
"Actually, I was relieved of duty for the rest of the day." She replied. Leah backed away from them. Chiku looked at the nervous cub.  
"I see you finally woke up." Chiku chuckled, "you don't need to be afraid, little one."  
Leah stopped backing up, but she didn't come any closer. Lisa trotted up to the cowering cub.  
"It's ok, Leah, this is my mom. She's the one that found you on the river banks."  
Leah stopped cowering. She stood up and tentatively limped to Chiku. The lioness leaned over to Leah, causing her to flinch, but Chiku only licked the top of her head.  
"So you're a long way from home huh?" Chiku asked sadly. Leah nodded.  
"Yeah, a very long way. I'm from the Pridelands." She almost whispered.  
"I thought so." The lioness said gravely.  
"Really? How did you know I was a pridelander?"  
"Your scent."  
Leah was silent for a bit, and then she asked something.  
"Will I ever see my home again?" Leah asked. Chiku hesitated, trying to find the right words.  
"Well, I'm not sure to be honest. The alpha was quite persistent on having you trained to become a huntress, I don't know if he'd allow you to leave, that is, if you become a true member of the pride." Chiku replied. Leah was puzzled.  
"A true member of the pride?" Leah asked. Chiku nodded.  
"He will put you through a right of passage. A test to see if you are a worthy pride member. All newcomers go through this."  
"And what is this test on?"  
"I'm not one hundred percent sure, it will most likely be a test of strength or endurance, like a fight."  
Leah swallowed hard. 'A fight? Strength? Endurance?' she thought fearfully, while looking at her crippled leg.  
Chiku could see the fear in the cub's eyes.  
"Don't worry Leah, it wont be for a while since you are still recovering." She said reassuringly. Leah shuddered, trying to get the worried thoughts out of her head, but she couldn't.  
"But how am I suppose to do those things when I can barely run?!" Leah cried. Chiku couldn't answer, mostly because she had the same question in her head. Lisa had an idea.  
"I'll train you." She said. Leah stared at her like she had just said 'I just ate a boot'.  
"Umm, how will you do that?" Leah asked slowly.  
"I'll teach you how to keep your balance, and how to run, after all, I'm one of the fastest cubs in the pride." Lisa replied. She could see the doubt in Leah's eyes, but she was determined to help her new friend. Leah shrugged.  
"Well, I guess it's worth a shot." She said half-heartedly. Chiku smiled at the cubs as they smiled at each other. Leah looked back up at the alpha's cave, but surprisingly, he wasn't there anymore. All that was there was the femur that he picked clean. Lisa cleared her throat, getting back Leah's attention.  
"Well, we might as well get started, huh?" she said, walking away. Leah took one last glance at Kopa's den, and then followed Lisa.  
"Let's do this." She said.


	7. Kiara's Reign Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Lisa took Leah out to a small oasis that sat in the middle of the rocky cliffs. A waterfall flowed over one of the mountain's faces into a pool of crystal clear water about half the size of the water hole back at the Pridelands. Lisa ran up to a rock ledge that leaned over the water, it reminded Leah of pride rock. After she was finished gaping at the beauty of the oasis, she followed Lisa onto the rock.  
"Why are we training here?" she asked Lisa.  
"Because a great way to train someone to walk; is to get them to swim, it's great warm up. It's how my mom learned to walk again after she severely sprained her ankle." Lisa answered. Leah gulped and looked down at the water, it looked awfully deep.  
"But I can't swim, I've never done it." She said to Lisa.  
"Really?" Lisa gawked, "You've never tried?"  
"Never."  
"Well, you wont be able to say that anymore."  
Leah looked at Lisa, confused by what she said, but then it all cleared up. Before she could react, Lisa shoved her off of the rock into the water with her head. Leah fell back first into the water and started struggling. Her head was just above the surface, her one back leg was furiously kicking and her front paws were splashing water everywhere. She glared at Lisa.  
"Just trust your instincts and stop struggling!" Lisa called to her. Leah tried to slow down her heart rate by taking deep breaths and slowed down her paddling. Lisa smiled.  
"Now you've got it!" she said happily. Leah let herself float in the water, realizing that it really wasn't as difficult as she thought it would be. She experimentally kicked her back left leg a little, and to her surprise, she was moved forward. She giggled and kicked her back legs, and slowly paddled her front legs, and swam up to Lisa's rock.  
"Ok, now you've got to come down so I can take revenge on you!" Leah taunted her. Lisa laughed.  
"No way, I'm staying up here!" Lisa cackled from her ledge. Leah grinned evilly.  
"What?" Lisa asked suspiciously.  
"Oh nothing, it's just a huge spider is sitting on your back." Leah said calmly. Lisa gave a girly squeal and sprang off of the rock, headfirst into the water. When she broke the surface of the water, she was staring at Leah, who had a very smug look on her face.  
"Gotcha." She said. Lisa growled and swam towards her. Leah laughed and swam away. They chased each other around the pool.  
It felt like she was weightless. She didn't have to stretch out her back left leg to swim; she only had to kick it a little. She swam under the waterfall and let it soak her head with its warm water. She saw Lisa dive under the surface. Leah dove under too. She chased after a single fish that was swimming around the bottom for a bit, and then kicked off of the rocks and rose to the surface.  
Lisa was already on the banks grooming her fur. Leah climbed out of the water and shook her body; sending water droplets everywhere.  
"What now?" Leah asked. Lisa stood up and grinned.  
"Now the real training begins." Lisa said to her, "We're gunna need more space."

The cubs approached the grasslands again, but this time it wasn't just the training cubs there this time, many of the huntresses were out hunting wildebeests. Lisa turned to Leah.  
"Let's see how you can run." Lisa said. Leah hesitated, but then she took a deep breath and broke into a limping run, and of coarse, tripped after a few feet. Lisa giggled and ran up to Leah, but looked up to the open grass ahead when she heard the sound of laughing cubs.  
Four young cubs her age were creeping through the grass. They stopped a few metres away from a family of ostriches and their nest. Four eggs sat in the nest.  
"Oh no, not this again." Lisa said quietly. Leah spat out a mouthful of dirt and stood up.  
"What?" Leah asked, and looked where Lisa was looking, "Who are they?"  
"They're the orphans of the pride, they lost their mothers and They're also the delinquents of the pride, they're always up to something."  
Lisa and Leah snuck through the grass, trying to get closer without getting caught.  
The largest cub in the group turned to the scrawniest one and grinned.  
"Ok Erevu, you know what to do." The big cub said. The little one had a roan coloured pelt, with blue eyes. He definatly looked nervous, like he really didn't want to be there.  
"Do I have to do this guys? Ostriches are really nasty." He squeaked. The burley cub laughed and pushed Erevu closer to the nest.  
"Just grab one egg and we're outta here." Another orphan said. Erevu swallowed and lowered to his belly and slowly started creeping towards the ostrich nest, as if he was hunting.  
"They're stealing an ostrich egg?" Leah whispered to Lisa.  
"That's one of their worst ideas yet." Lisa whispered back in horror. Erevu stopped just before the nest when the mother ostrich looked in his direction, but thankfully didn't see him.  
"We have to stop them before they get killed!" Leah whispered, but before either of the girls could get any closer, one of the huntresses saw the orphaned cubs.  
"What are you doing?!" she screamed at them, which of coarse caught the mother ostrich's attention, and the first things she saw were the orphan cubs.  
"RUN!" The big cub screamed, as if the others needed that advice. Everyone tore out of there, including Lisa and Leah. The ostrich was gaining on the cubs. Erevu quickly turned around and ran back to the ostrich nest.  
"Hey mother ostrich, look what I'm doing!" he shouted. The mother stopped chasing the other cubs to see Erevu at her nest, resting his paw on one of her eggs, he was distracting her so everyone else could escape. She let out an irritated screech and charged at him. Erevu attempted to run off but he tripped and landed right on top of one of the eggs, shattering it into pieces and getting the inside goop all over him. That's when things got bad.  
Lisa and Leah stopped running and turned to see Erevu. The mother ostrich was pecking and slapping him about. Leah looked around, but nobody was running in to help him.  
Lisa gasped in horror.  
"We have to do something!" she cried and looked at Leah, but Leah was no longer there.  
"Leah?!" Lisa cried. She looked back at the ostrich attack and saw Leah running right to it. 'How did she get there so fast?' Lisa thought as she broke into a run as well.  
Leah ran at the ostrich and snapped her teeth onto the mother's leg. Erevu gaped at her as the mother ostrich thrashed around with the crippled cub clamped onto one of her legs. Finally he got to his senses and took off into the grass. Lisa made it to the ostrich and bit onto the other leg. The mother ostrich was finally able to throw Leah off of her leg. Leah landed into the long grass and disappeared from the ostrich's sight. Lisa let go of the other leg and took off back to the rocky cliffs, still being chased by the mother ostrich when she suddenly ran into a lion's leg. She looked up to see the alpha lion, Kopa. He stepped in front of Lisa and glared at the ostrich. She stopped her charge and stared at the alpha. Kopa and her seemed to exchange a silent conversation. The mother turned around and walked back to her nest. Kopa glared down at Lisa.  
"Where are those cubs?" he asked her. Lisa gulped and looked out to the grass.  
"I saw them run into the grass." She said. Kopa ran into the long grass and consulted the huntresses that gathered around into one area. Eventually Kopa walked back to Lisa with all four of the orphans walking behind him with their heads down. Lisa approached the alpha.  
"Did you see Leah in the grass?" Lisa asked him. Kopa shook his head. Suddenly the grass started rustling and a cub stumbled out in front of Kopa.  
"Leah! You're ok!" Lisa exclaimed. Leah collapsed onto the rocky ground.  
"Yeah. So much for training huh?" Leah snickered. Lisa giggled. Kopa looked down at Leah, with a slight look of relief on his face.  
"I didn't even see you in that grass." Kopa told her. Leah was puzzled.  
"Really? I was right in front of you in that grass." Leah replied. Kopa looked at the ground, deep in thought, but then he turned to the orphans.  
"You four, come with me." He said darkly, and headed back into the cliffs. The four cubs all exchanged a nervous look and slowly followed behind the alpha into the mountains. Lisa walked up to Leah.  
"Hey, you know what I noticed, Leah," Lisa said, "You can run."  
Leah gawked at Lisa.  
"What?" she said, eyebrows arched.  
"Leah, You can run when you need to, you don't need training at all." Lisa said excitedly. Leah looked off to the side.  
"How does that even work?" Leah asked herself.  
"Pff, beats me, but I say go with it!" Lisa snorted, giving a mock punch to Leah's shoulder. Leah smiled and limped to the entrance to the mountains.  
"You wanna go swimming before we have to go back to your den?" Leah asked. Lisa looked at the sky, where the sun was just starting to set. She looked back at Leah.  
"Sure!" she said and followed Leah into the mountains.


	8. Kiara's Reign Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The two cubs headed back to Chiku's den, sopping wet from their swim. Chiku was lying down at the entrance to the cave grooming her paws. Leah noticed Erevu and the other orphans walking away from Kopa's den, they seemed to be ok. Lisa and Leah headed over to Erevu. He had a few bruises and scratches and a little bit of egg gunk in his fur from his ostrich boxing, but other than that, he was fine.  
"See ya later, Eggman!" the other orphans called to him and headed for their dens. Erevu glared at them.  
"Don't call me that!" he shouted back. Lisa looked at him.  
"What did the alpha say to you?" she asked him. Erevu shrugged.  
"Oh the usual stuff, that what we did was extremely foolish, blah, blah, if we set another toe out of line there will be consequences, and so on." He replied. Lisa giggled.  
"You always have a way of getting on his nerves." Lisa snickered. Erevu laughed half heartedly, and looked at Leah.  
"You know, I never got a chance to thank you for saving my life, uhh, what's your name?" Erevu asked.  
"My name's Leah, and you're welcome." Leah replied. Erevu smiled and turned back to Lisa.  
"Well, I'd better get back to my den, I'll see you two tomorrow then?" he said. Lisa nodded.  
"Sure thing, Eggman." Lisa giggled. Erevu frowned.  
"Don't, just…don't." he grumbled, and walked away. Lisa laughed with Leah, and then looked past Leah, she gave a sly grin.  
"Hey Leah, look who's coming this way." She said. Leah turned around to see Sefu walking up to her. Leah gulped and walked up to him.  
"Uh, hey Sefu, nice to see you again." She squeaked. Sefu chuckled.  
"Hey, I just wanted to say, that was pretty cool what you did for that Eggman kid, it was pretty brave." Sefu said. Leah blushed right down to her toes.  
"It was nothing, really." She said, though it looked like she was talking to her paws. Sefu laughed again.  
"You're definitely different from the other cubs. I like that." Sefu said to the cub. Leah didn't sense any sarcasm in that comment. He really meant it.  
"Well, I'd better go, the others are waiting for me." Sefu said and started to walk away, "see you later Leah."  
Leah's heart was dancing. Sefu walked back to his friends, about four girls his age, who also looked as tough as he looked. They all looked at Leah a weird way and then the one in front walked up to him and whispered in his ear. Sefu said something back and then laughed. The four cubs walked past him and went straight towards Leah. Her and Lisa exchanged a look as the four older cubs stopped in front of them. The one in the front went right up to Leah and looked down at her.  
"Well hello there, little cub, Sefu's been telling me about you." She said, leaning in closer, " I'm Amira."  
"Uhh, hi there." Leah said, feeling a little uncomfortable on how close Amira was to her face. Amira cleared her throat and backed off a bit. They all started walking away.  
"Hey cub, would you like to go on a little walk with us?" one of her friends asked. Leah hesitated, but then shrugged.  
"Uhh, sure, I guess." She replied and started following them. Lisa did too, but Amira looked back at her.  
"Oh, not you Lola." She said. Lisa stopped following.  
"It's Lisa." She grumbled, and turned back.

Amira and her friends took Leah deeper into the mountains, farther from the sight of the dens and into a narrow canyon. The moonlight didn't light up every part of it, so there were many spots of darkness that made the canyon less inviting.  
"So Leah, I hear that you like Sefu." Amira suddenly said. Leah glanced around the canyon before answering.  
"Well, he's cute, and charming, and really nice, and cute, and strong, and cute…" Leah answered dreamily. Something in Amira's body language changed.  
"Hmm, I guess that's too bad, because he's already betrothed to me, cub, so don't get any ideas. He's mine." Amira said darkly. Leah was getting uncomfortable.  
"Hey, you don't have to get huffy, did anyone ever actually say that you two betrothed?" Leah said, getting angry. She'd had enough of other cubs pushing her around just because they had issues. Amira knew that she was caught.  
"Well, what chance would you have with the future alpha? You are nothing compared to me." She said. The cubs started to circle each other very slowly. Amira's friends were snickering.  
"You know, just because I have a bad leg, it doesn't mean I'm nothing, I just took on a bloody ostrich for crying out loud!" Leah shot back, starting to lower her head. Amira lowered her head as well. Their circling was getting faster. Leah remembered when her father had taught her basic fighting.  
"Don't just watch their body language, watch their eyes." He had said.  
Leah could see Amira's muscles tensing up; her red eyes were looking at Leah's bad leg. Amira lunged.  
Leah slashed her claws across Amira's face, knocking her aside. Amira was completely taken by surprise by that, but she quickly got back up and attacked Leah again.  
They were biting and ripping at each other. Leah had a hard time keeping balance. Amira was fast. She whipped around and bit down on Leah's bad leg. Her scream of pain echoed through the canyon as Amira tossed Leah into the canyon's wall like a rag doll. Leah fell to the ground, landing onto her stomach and didn't get up. Amira walked up to her and placed a front paw on Leah's back, digging her claws into her fur. She leaned down and whispered into her ear.  
"I'll let you live this time, cub," she hissed, "but if you go near Sefu again, or get in my way. If you ever tell anyone about this, I'll kill you."  
She retracted her claws from Leah.  
"Welcome to the pride, cub." She said as she walked away with her friends. Leah unsteadily stood up and looked through the darkness of the canyon. The only thought that came to her mind was: 'wow, that cub is nuts'.

The sun rose over pride rock with a warm light. It had been a few weeks since Leah had disappeared. Kiara and Kovu had become a little more protective over Koda and Asha. They weren't allowed to go very far without an escort. Koda was getting more antsy from being cooped up in Pride Rock, constantly being watched by either Zazu, lionesses that weren't hunting or searching for Leah, or by his father. He knew his parents had the best intentions, but it was getting on his nerves. Asha became a little more isolated from everyone else, except her brother.  
Koda was sitting on the top of Pride Rock watching the sunrise when he heard paws walking up behind him.  
"Son, you're up here again?"  
Koda turned to see his father, Kovu, standing behind him.  
"Well I can't do much else." Koda answered somewhat rudely. Kovu came up beside him and sat down.  
"Look I know that you're frustrated, but you know how things are messed up right now. More hyenas are in the area."  
Koda frowned at his feet. This was the same answer he always got.  
"Look, I know that you're unhappy about Leah, I am too, but you have to chill, I'd be fine going on my own to the water hole." Koda said, standing up.  
"I'm sorry champ, but you can't go on your own. Asha and Zazu will go with you."  
"But dad—"  
"No buts."  
Koda frowned and walked away from his father and left down to the den. Kovu hated to see his son like this, having to restrain the cub's adventurous spirit, but he just couldn't bear the thought of loosing another child. Realizing how invaluable his cubs were, made him want to be with them at all times, if anything happened to either of them…  
Koda walked in and poked a sleeping Asha in her back. Asha looked up at him with tired eyes.  
"Why are you up so early?" she yawned.  
"I want to go to the water hole, and dad says I can't go without you and Zazu." Koda said glumly. Asha got up and stretched, extending her claws.  
"That's not where you were really going to go to, was it?" she grumbled.  
"Bingo." Koda said as the others started waking up. Kiara, grandma Nala and aunt Vitani all woke up. The lionesses started leaving the cave for their morning hunt. Simba walked up to Koda and Asha.  
"Morning, cubs." He said warmly. Asha trotted up to her grandfather and rubbed against his front leg. This made him smile, bringing back memories of when his daughter Kiara would rub against his front legs and purr when she was little, but it also brought up sad memories of how Leah always did it as well. Koda came up to the king as well and rubbed against his legs too. Kovu came down to meet the lionesses as they left. Kiara came back to say goodbye to her family. She licked the tops of Koda and Asha's heads.  
"See you later cubs." She purred, and then 'hugged' Kovu and Simba.  
"Good luck." Simba whispered to his daughter, though it pained him to see her like this, he could still sense the despair in her heart. Kiara gave a small smile and followed the rest of the lionesses. Kiara did a very good job of masking her pain, but every so often, she just wanted to lie in the cave and cry for the loss of one of her little ones, she knew she couldn't, she had to be strong for her mate, and her other cubs, her treasures. Nothing was worse for a mother than to lose a child, the pain was almost unbearable sometimes. A hornbill flew in and landed on Kovu's shoulders.  
"Oh Zazu, I'm glad you came by." Kovu said, "my son and daughter wish to go to the water hole, and I'd like you to go with them."  
"Of coarse." Zazu said, looking at Koda and Asha. Koda tried his best to hide his annoyance through a forced smile. Simba stood by Kovu.  
"Have fun cubs." The grandfather said.  
"Oh we will." Koda said through a cheeky grin. Simba and Kovu both raised an eyebrow as the two cubs ran off with Zazu gliding above them. Koda looked over at Asha.  
"Ok, have any ideas on how we can ditch him?" he whispered. Asha shook her head.  
"We'll do no such thing Koda." She whispered back. Koda groaned.  
"Why do you have to be such a stick in the mud?" he growled. Asha sighed. Zazu swooped down and landed in front of them.  
"You two seem quiet." He said Koda and Asha exchanged a look. Asha looked back at the hornbill and was about to respond when she heard flapping wings above her head, she, Koda and Zazu looked up as a feathery mass was flapping madly at them. It flew at Zazu, nearly hitting Koda as it crashed into the majordomo. Zazu groaned underneath the other bird. The mystery bird gasped and jumped off of him and backed off. Zazu glared and got to his feet. Koda rolled his eyes, 'oh boy' he thought, 'here comes the rant', but to his surprise Zazu just stood and stared at the bird. The bird was clearly a hornbill like him, only a bit smaller and had paler feathers; she looked about his age as well.  
"Oh, I'm so sorry sir." The hornbill said, backing into Asha. She gasped and backed back into Zazu.  
"Oh dear, I'm so out of sorts at the moment." She stuttered. Zazu puffed out his chest and held his beak a little higher.  
"That is quite alright, madam, these things happen." He said to her. The female calmed down enough to stop backing into everyone and steadied herself.  
"My apologies, I'm Hasa and I have just migrated here but I lost control of my flying." The hornbill said. Zazu walked up to her and smiled.  
"Oh, trust me, it happens to the best of us." He chuckled. Hasa giggled shyly.  
'Oh for the love of…' Koda thought as he glanced to the patch of tall grass on his right. He looked at his sister and then back at Zazu. The majordomo was in mid conversation with Hasa when the prince cleared his throat.  
"Weren't we going to the water hole or something?" he asked loudly, earning him a glare from Asha.  
"Of coarse we are." Zazu answered quickly, and turned back to Hasa, "would you care to join us?"  
"Oh, of coarse I would, I have nothing better to do anyway." She replied happily. Koda rolled his eyes as the two hornbills took off and slowly flew above the two cubs, continuing their previous conversation. Asha started to follow them, as well as Koda. He looked up to make sure that Zazu wasn't paying attention before he whispered to his sister.  
"Now's our chance." He breathed. Asha didn't look at him.  
"Our chance to do what?" she whispered back.  
"Our chance to ditch the majordodo." Koda replied. Asha shook her head.  
"No Koda." She said flatly. Koda sighed.  
"Fine, I'll go on my own." He said and snuck into the long grass without Zazu noticing. The hornbill was absorbed in his conversation with Hasa. Asha stopped walking and stared at the spot where Koda entered the long grass. She looked back at her escorts, who were getting further ahead. She growled under her breath and followed her nincompoop of a brother.  
Koda trotted through the grass and into a clearing. Asha came up behind him and shook the grass off of her body. Koda smirked at her.  
"I knew you'd come. You just couldn't resist having a little adventure, maybe bend a rule for once." He said smoothly. Asha frowned.  
"You are such a dork." She grumbled. Koda laughed and pounced on her, trying to pin her down. Asha cracked a smile and wrestled her brother to the ground, her paw holding his face down.  
"Pinned ya." She snickered. Koda spat dirt out of his mouth as Asha let him up.  
"Show off." He grumbled, but then smiled. Asha smiled back when suddenly the grass started rustling behind them. Something was headed towards their clearing. Koda groaned.  
"Great, Zazu must've found out that we split and he sent dad after us." He sighed. Asha was about to reply when whatever was coming came into the clearing. And it definitely wasn't Kovu. Asha gasped sharply and stared right into the eyes of a large hyena. Two more came into the clearing behind the two cubs, giggling evilly.  
Koda and Asha were being ambushed.


	9. Kiara's ReignChapter 9

Chapter 9

The three hyenas slowly circled the frightened cubs, almost taunting them. Asha didn't break eye contact with the leader as she stood in front of her brother. The leader neared closer to the cubs but slowed his pace when he saw the icy death glare Asha gave him. Her hackles stood up as she growl ripped through her bared teeth. One of the other hyenas chuckled evilly.  
"Oooh, this kitty's got spunk." He said obnoxiously. Asha sniffed in distain. The leader came in closer again.  
"Look, we don't want any trouble, we'll just go right back to the water hole and forget we ever saw you." Koda said from behind his sister. The lead hyena smiled horrendously and came right up to Koda's face.  
"'Fraid we can't do that pal, we're under strict orders to do away with ya." He sneered. Koda gasped and ducked down. Asha growled deep in her throat.  
"Come any closer to by brother and I'll claw your pitiful excuse for a face." She hissed at the hyena unsheathing her claws. Just the tone of her voice gave Koda chills; he could easily tell she wasn't bluffing, for a sweet, goody four paws princess, she sounded downright murderous. The hyenas all laughed at the princess as the leader lunged at Koda. Asha let out a loud snarl and raked her claws across the hyena's face, knocking him aside. The others gasped and backed off a bit. Asha just huffed.  
"I warned you." She said calmly. The leader shook his head and faced her, his eyes were full of hate.  
"You'll pay for that you little brat." He growled and lunged at her this time. Asha took one quick glance at Koda, as time seemed to have slowed down. He and her seemed to exchange a silent conversation in that one look, Koda could see the deep fear in her eyes, not for herself though. Asha lunged at the leader like an arrow from a bow and clamped her teeth on his throat. The leader thrashed and tried to throw her off, but couldn't.  
"Get this thing off me!" he wheezed at his two comrades. They ran to his aid. Koda ran to stop them, but was swatted aside like a rag doll. Asha saw that and made the mistake of loosening her grip. One of the other hyenas slammed him paw on her side, slicing her hide, knocking her off of the leaders neck. Asha hit the dirt hard, but got back to her feet, despite being wounded. The leader coughed and tried to recover from her attack. Koda didn't know what to do, he remembered the look Asha gave him before she attacked, she wanted him to run off, but he couldn't run off, not without her.  
Koda couldn't believe what she was doing; she was throwing her life in jeopardy just for him. He saw that the hyenas were completely taken back by her fighting, but that didn't stop them from fighting back. The fight got more and more violent, the hyenas were not letting up on Koda's poor sister as she attempted to scare them off, she was latched on one of the hyena's neck, the leaded grabbed her by the right ear and threw her off by it, she hit a rock, and went down. She didn't get up.  
"ASHA!" Koda cried and ran to her side, Asha was unconscious and hurt badly, Koda felt tears come to his eyes as he nudged her, trying to wake her, the hyenas laughed and started stalking towards the two, Koda stood over top of his sister and glared at them, if they were going to get her, they'd have to go through him first…  
The lead Hyena was almost on top of him when suddenly a large paw knocked him away with a single blow, Koda's eyes widened as he looked at their rescuer. A large, dark male lion with a scar over his left eye, Kovu, and did he look angry.  
"Dad!" Koda cried, Kovu gave his son a quick glance as he stood in front of his cubs.  
"Koda, stay low!" he ordered and then faced the hyenas, the remaining ones looked downright terrified of the father. Kovu let out a booming roar at them, scaring them away immediately. Koda let out a deep breath and fell down beside his sister, suddenly exhausted by the ordeal. Kovu rushed to the two, the sight of his precious cubs in this state, especially Asha, had him worried sick.  
"Koda, are you all right?" he asked, Koda sniffled and nodded.  
"I'm fine, but Asha's hurt real bad.." he whimpered, Kovu licked his daughter and then carefully picked her up by her scruff and motioned Koda to follow him. Koda slowly walked behind the king as they headed home.  
Kiara nearly went into hysterics when she saw the two cubs' state. Koda was walking slowly, but close to his father's paws, and Asha was still unconscious, being held by Kovu still. Kiara and Nala rushed to them.  
"Koda! Asha!" Kiara cried and then looked at Kovu, "What happened to them?"  
Kovu gently rested Asha onto the ground where Koda wordlessly went to her side and lay down on top of her like he was using himself to shield her mangled body from the world.  
"Kiara…they were ambushed by hyenas, I didn't see it all, by the time I got there, Asha was on the ground…" Kovu said, almost choking on his own words. Kiara leaned down and licked her cubs, trying to keep it together, but she was slowly crumbling to pieces.  
"Oh my babies, my babies…" she whimpered, "How could I have allowed this to happen…"  
There was a feeling of dread that hung in the air at pride rock, and nobody felt worse than Koda. Rafiki had arrived with his herbs and started to treat Asha's wounds. Koda slipped out of his mother's grasp and ran into the den, before Kiara could call after him, her friend Vitani followed the cub. She saw him curled in a furry little ball in the far corner. The lioness felt her heart grow heavy as she approached him.  
"Koda?" she whispered softly. Koda sniffed. Vitani sighed and lay down beside him, "Koda, look at me."  
Koda finally looked up, his eyes were red and full of tears. Vitani rested a paw on him.  
"Tell me what happened." She said. Koda took a few breaths.  
"It's all my fault…First Leah, now Asha…I'm the worst brother that ever lived!" he sobbed. Vitani saddened.  
"It isn't your fault…" she started, but was cut off by the young cub as he suddenly stood up.  
"Don't even say that! You know it's true, I know it's true! I led her away from Zazu! I was the one that ran off with those dung-for-brains cubs instead of playing with my little sister! Because of me all this chaos happened! Don't deny it aunt 'Tani! Well from now on I'm never running off from home again! It's time for me to grow up and become the prince I'm supposed to be!" he shouted and ran off to another corner, "don't give my your pity…"  
Vitani sighed and slowly got to her paws. Looking at him one more time, she headed back out of the cave to where everyone was gathered. Simba looked over at Vitani hopefully, but she shook her head sadly and sat down beside her brother and looked down at the mother and fallen princess. Rafiki finished applying the herbs and looked up at the anxious parents.  
"She will live." He said, "but she may not be de same wit' her scars."  
Kiara nuzzled her daughter, Kovu let out a long sad sigh. He had failed his family. Again.


End file.
